Activism in Middle School:
15 Artists You Can Feature in Your Teaching
Here are 15 artists whose work addresses a wide range of causes and issues. Most of these artists are still active today, but I’ve included a couple of historical artists as well.
Wondering how to go about sharing these with your students, or introducing the arts as a way of advocating for change? Check out my previous blog post.
Shane Koyczan
Spoken word poet. To This Day is an animated piece of spoken word poetry which addresses bullying. How to Be a Person is also fantastic (but does include a swear word).
2. Christi Belcourt
Indigenous visual artist: “I see war, but I paint flowers.”
www.Christibelcourt.com
3. Edward Burtynsky
Photographer & climate activist. Burtynsky’s stunning photographs highlight the impact humanity has on the natural world.
https://www.edwardburtynsky.com/
4. Selma Burke
African American sculptor known for her portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt, which was the model for the relief featured on the American dime.
https://artsandculture.google.com/story/selma-burke-spelman-college-museum-of-fine-art/HwWxQg9pwNugHQ?hl=en
5. Kenet Garcia Rojas
Director and animator. The film, “Siblings” was created as his Art Center College of Design thesis.
6. Dorothy Lange
Photographer who worked during the Great Depression & WWII. Powerful black & white images communicate the desperation of poverty and highlight humanity in challenging times.
https://www.moma.org/artists/3373
7. Barbara Kruger
Conceptual artist whose work deals with cultural issues through everyday life. See “Your Comfort is My Silence” and “We Don’t Need Another Hero.”
https://www.glenstone.org/artist/barbara-kruger/
8. Pawel Kuczynski
Illustrator whose images deal with current issues around the world, including our evolving use of technology, corporate greed and others. This one is a new favorite of mine!
https://www.photographize.co/articles/pawelkuczynski/#google_vignette
https://www.pictorem.com/profile/Pawel.Kuczynski
7. Taylor Swift
We all know Taylor Swift. This song & music video speak out against hate towards the LGBTQ+ community.
8. Nathan Murdoch:
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-65777907
Long-time street artist whose murals promote acceptance and anti-racism. I love these pieces!
9. Maxine Noel, C.M.
https://www.gg.ca/en/honours/canadian-honours/order-canada/maxine-noel-cm
Indigenous (Sioux) artist whose recent work brings awareness to the missing and murdered indigenous women in Canada (the works are not graphic).
10. Dr. Seuss
Though you’ll undoubtedly have heard of Dr. Seuss, his books are a great way to show students that the use of art for activism is anything but new. “The Sneetches” is a good one as well; it deals with conformity and is great for addressing the fads that can be so rampant in middle school.
11. Jason Decaires Taylor
Sculptor who creates large-scale pieces of art underwater. They’re incredible and unsettling.
https://www.activistart.org/jason-decaires-taylor/
https://underwatersculpture.com/
The Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg
A short film developed as a thesis project at The Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg, based on a comic strip by Fabio Coala. The film reminds us not to judge before we have all of the facts.
12. Mikarla Teague
Painter and mixed media artist whose work addresses exploitation, poverty, sexism and homophobia. A few of her images are more appropriate for adult viewers; preview ahead.
https://www.mikarlateague.com/
13. Harem Jamal
Kurdish artist whose work is inspired by many years spent in refugee camps as a child.
15. Amal Abu Al Sabah
You’ll have to Google this one, because I can’t be sure the sources are completely unbiased or reliable. However, Amal Abu Al Sabah is a Palestinian woman who has created paintings on the rubble of bombed buildings in Gaza, advocating for peace amidst the rubble.
